In Bollywood, Holi is usually an
occasion for joy, sometimes a time for things darker. Songs and dances apart,
these cinematic Holi moments stand out in the crowd.

Any Holi discussion is incomplete
without the song Rang Barse from Silsila. Just before Amit (Amitabh Bachchan)
starts singing, Chandni (Rekha) tells Amit's wife Shobha (Jaya Bachchan) that
she didn't marry the man she fell in love with. In another corner, Amit makes
the same confession to Chandni's husband Dr Anand (Sanjeev Kumar).

In Mohabbatein (2000), school
teacher Raj (Shah Rukh Khan) uses his powers of persuasion and a teeka of gulaal
to get strict principal Narayan Shankar (Amitabh Bachchan) to let the students
play Holi.

Shah Rukh's first brush with
cinematic Holi was much less celebratory. In 1993's Darr, he played an
obsessive stalker and infiltrated Juhi Chawla's Holi party, sneaking into her
house to tell his "K-K-K-Kiran" how much he loves her.

In the landmark Sholay (1975),
Holi provides an opportunity for Veeru to romance Basanti, Gabbar Singh's band
of villains to lay waste to the village of Ramgarh (only to be seen off by Jai
and Veeru) and finally provides the revelation that Thakur has no arms.

In 1992's Deewana, Holi is an
occasion for Raja (Shah Rukh Khan) to deliver an impassioned declaration of
love to the widowed Kajal (Divya Bharti), ending by throwing red gulaal on her
white sari.

Balam Pichkari gets everyone
dancing in 2013 movie Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewaani but the scene to watch out for
is the one that follows, where Naina (Deepika Padukone) is about to tell Bunny
(Ranbir Kapoor) she loves him but doesn't because she realizes how different
their worlds are.

In 1991's Saudagar, Holi is when
the 14 year feud between Dilip Kumar and Raaj Kumar ends, with Dilip Kumar
refusing to be smeared with gulaal and Raaj Kumar then claiming the privilege
of friendship to do so.

Not every Holi is all innocent
song and dance. In a pivotal scene in Damini (1993), Meenakshi Seshadri is
witness to the rape of a maid by her brother-in-law and his friends on Holi.
The maid dies in hospital, the rape is covered up by the family and Meenakshi
Seshadri is the lone crusader for justice till she meets lawyer Sunny Deol.

In 1970, Kati Patang blended Holi
fun with social reform. Kamal (Rajesh Khanna), broken-hearted after being
jilted at the altar, tries to get the woman whose friendship helped him heal -
the ostensibly widowed Madhavi (Asha Parekh) - to play Holi.

In Namak Haraam (1973), Chander
(Rajesh Khanna) goes for the pichkari-wielding Shyama (Rekha) with a bucket.
What follows is a tutorial on the effects of bhang and how not to behave when
under the influence. The song Nadiya Se Dariya follows this scene.